This invention generally relates to the art of electrical connectors and, particularly, to a connector for mounting on a printed circuit board and including ground terminals or plates disposed between a plurality of signal terminals.
A conventional surface mount electrical connector for mounting on a printed circuit board includes an insulative or dielectric housing having a plurality of conductive terminals arranged within the housing in a predetermined spacing, such as in one or more rows. Each of the terminals has a solder tail projecting from the housing to a surface of the printed circuit board. The solder tails are fixed to conductive circuit traces on the circuit board by soldering techniques.
In certain surface mount input/output (I/O) electrical connectors, ground terminals or plates are disposed between at least some of the signal terminals in order to control impedance and to reduce cross-talk between the signal terminals. The ground terminals or plates also have solder tails for connection to appropriate ground circuit traces on the printed circuit board. The ground plates are sized and shaped either to be mirror images of the signal terminals, or the signal terminals are disposed substantially within longitudinal profiles of the ground plates in order to eliminate or at least reduce cross-talk between the terminals. When the ground plates have solder tails for connection to the ground circuit traces on the printed circuit board, either the solder tails lack sufficient flexibility or they do not provide a true mirror image of the signal terminals. The present invention is directed to solving these problems with improved ground terminals or plates in such surface mounted electrical connectors.
An object, therefore, of the invention is to provide a new and improved electrical connector of the character described for mounting on a printed circuit board.
In the exemplary embodiment of the invention, the connector includes an elongated dielectric housing having a front mating end and a rear terminating end. A plurality of signal terminals are mounted on the housing and are spaced longitudinally thereof. Each signal terminal includes a contact portion at the mating end of the housing for contacting an appropriate terminal of a complementary connecting device, and a tail portion at the terminating end of the housing for connection to an appropriate signal circuit trace on the printed circuit board. A plurality of ground plates are mounted on the housing between at least some of the signal terminals. Each ground plate includes a body portion, a front portion projecting forwardly of the body portion at the mating end of the housing, and a tail portion projecting rearwardly of the body portion at the terminating end of the housing for connection to an appropriate ground trace on the printed circuit board. The signal terminals are disposed substantially within the longitudinal profiles of the body portions and front portions of the ground plates in a direction longitudinally of the housing, with the tail portions of the ground plates projecting rearwardly of the profiles.
The invention contemplates that the contact portions of the signal terminals be substantially within the longitudinal profiles of the front portions of the ground plates longitudinally of the housing. The tail portions of the signal terminals are substantially within the longitudinal profiles of the body portions of the ground plates longitudinally of the housing.
As disclosed herein, the dielectric housing defines a right-angled configuration of the electrical connector. The contact portions and front portions of the signal terminals and ground terminals, respectively, extend at right angles to the respective tail portions thereof. The signal terminals are mounted in pairs spaced longitudinally of the housing, and the ground plates are disposed on the housing between adjacent pairs of the signal terminals. The tail portions of the signal terminals and ground plates include surface-mounting feet for connection to the circuit traces and ground traces on the printed circuit board.
According to one aspect of the invention, the contact portions of the signal terminals are disposed in two spaced rows longitudinally of the housing for receiving a plug-type connecting device between the rows of contact portions. The front portions of the ground plates are bifurcated to define a pair of spaced arms for receiving at least a portion of the connecting device therebetween. The contact portions of the signal terminals are substantially within the longitudinal profiles of the spaced arms of the ground plates.